The present invention relates to the training of relay call assistants and specifically to training call assistants to facilitate relay calls using a re-voicing technique.
A system for real-time transcription of remotely spoken voice signals is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,909,482 assigned to the same assignee as the present invention and hereby incorporated by reference. This system may find use implementing both a “captel” (caption telephone) in which a user receives both voice and transcribed text through a “relay” from a remote second party to a conversation, and a “personal interpreter” in which a user receives through the relay a text transcription of words originating from the location of the user.
In either case, a human “call assistant” at the relay, listens to the voice signal and “re-voices” the words to a speech recognition computer program tuned to that call assistant's voice. Re-voicing is an operation in which the call assistant repeats, in slightly delayed fashion, the words she or he hears. The text output by the speech recognition system is then transmitted to the captel or personal interpreter. Re-voicing by the call assistant overcomes a current limitation of computer speech recognition programs; that they need to be trained to a particular speaker and thus, cannot currently handle direct translation of speech from a variety of users.
In order for the relay system to work properly, the call assistants must be properly trained. Re-voicing is not a natural process, and call assistants need an opportunity to practice re-voicing before becoming proficient enough to be able to handle actual telephone relay calls efficiently. Additionally, certain situations that call assistants may encounter in actual relay calls may present particular difficulties to the call assistant. Simulated experience in dealing with these difficult situations will help maintain a high level of service when such situations actually arise.